Transcription
Shamati(I Heard)
Shamati(I Heard)L AI TM ANKABBAL AH PU BLISHERSRabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam)
SHAMATI (I Heard)Copyright 2007 by MICHAEL LAITMANAll rights reservedPublished by Laitman Kabbalah Publisherswww.kabbalah.infoinfo@kabbalah.info1057 Steeles Avenue West, Suite 532, Toronto, ON, M2R 3X1, Canada194 Quentin Rd, 2nd floor, Brooklyn, New York, 11223, USAPrinted in IsraelNo part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner withoutwritten permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotationsembodied in critical articles or reviews.Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataAshlag, Yehudah.Shamati (I heard) / Yehuda Ashlag ; compiled by MichaelLaitman. -1st ed.p. cm.ISBN 978-1-897448-10-61. Cabala. I. Laitman, Michael. II. Title. III. Title: I heard.BM525.A824 2008296.1 6--dc222008005841Compilation: Rav Michael Laitman, PhDCopy Editors: Michael R. Kellogg, Natasha SigmundProofreading: Mark Berelekhis, Sarah TalalLayout: Luba VisotzkiCover Design: Bat Sheva BroshPrinting: Doron GoldinPost Production: Uri LaitmanExecutive Editor and Translator: Chaim RatzFIRST EDITION: FEBRUARY 2009First printing
TABLE OF CONTENTS1. There Is None Else Besides Him . 152. Divinity in Exile .203. The Matter of Spiritual Attainment . 214. What Is the Reason for the Heaviness One Feelswhen Annulling before the Creator in the Work? .265. Lishma Is an Awakening from Above, and WhyDo We Need an Awakening from Below? .286. What Is Support in the Torah, in the Work .337. What Is the Habit Becomes a Second Nature, in the Work .388. What Is the Difference between a Shade of Kedushaand a Shade of Sitra Achra .399. What Are Three Things that Broaden One’s Mind in the Work.4210. What Is Make Haste My Beloved, in the Work.4311. Joy WIth a Quiver .4412. The Essence of One’s Work .4413. A Pomegranate .4514. What Is the Greatness of the Creator? .4615. What Is Other Gods in the Work . 4716. What Is the Day of the Lord andthe Night of the Lord in the Work .5017. What Does It Mean that the Sitra AchraIs Called “Malchut without a Crown” .5518. What Is, My Soul shall Weep in Secret in the Work .5819. What Is, the Creator Hates the Bodies, in the Work.5920. Lishma (For Her Name) .7221. When One Feels Oneself in a State of Ascent . 7422. Torah Lishma (for Her Name) . 7623. You that Love the Lord, Hate Evil. 7724. Out of the Hand of the Wicked .79
25. Things that Come from the Heart .8026. One’s Future Depends and Is Tied to Gratitude for the Past .8227. What Is “The Lord Is High and the Low Will See” .8328. I shall Not Die but Live .8429. When Thoughts Come to a Person.8530. The Most Important Is to Want Only to Bestow .8531. All that Pleases the Spirit of the People .8632. A Lot Is an Awakening from Above . 8733. The Lots on Yom Kippurim and with Haman .8834. The Profit of a Land .9835. Concerning the Vitality of Kedusha . 10536. What Are the Three Bodies in a Man . 11037. An Article for Purim . 11238. The Fear of God Is His Treasure . 12339. And they Sewed Fig-Leaves . 12740. Faith in the Rav, What is the Measure . 12941. What Is Greatness and Smallness in Faith .13242. What Is the Acronym ELUL in the Work.13343. The Matter of Truth and Faith . 14144. Mind and Heart . 14345. Two Discernments in the Torah and in the Work. 14346. The Domination of Israel over the Klipot . 14547. In the Place where You Find His Greatness . 14648. The Primary Basis . 14749. The Most Important Is the Mindand the Heart . 14850. Two States . 14951. If You Encounter This Villain .15252. A Transgression Does Not Put Out a Mitzva .15253. The Matter of Limitation .15654. The Purpose of the Work . 15755. Haman from the Torah, from Where .159
56. Torah Is Called Indication . 16057. Will Bring Him as a Burned Offering to His Will . 16358. Joy Is a “Reflection” of Good Deeds . 16559. About the Rod and the Serpent . 16660. A Mitzva that Comes through Transgression . 17161. Round About Him It Stormeth Mightily . 17262. Descends and Incites, Ascends and Complains .17463. I was Borrowed on, and I Repay . 17564. From Lo Lishma to Lishma . 17665. About the Revealed and the Concealed. 17866. The Giving of the Torah. 18067. Depart from Evil . 18268. Man’s Connection to the Sefirot . 18569. First Will Be the Correction of the World. 18870. With a Mighty Hand and with Fury Poured Out . 18971. My Soul Shall Weep in Secret. 19172. Confidence Is the Clothing for the Light . 19273. After the Tzimtzum . 19374. World, Year, Soul . 19575. There Is a Discernment of the Next World,and There Is a Discernment of This World . 19576. With All Thy Offerings Thou ShaltOffer Salt . 19677. One Learns from One’s Soul . 19778. The Torah, the Creator,and Israel Are One. 19779. Atzilut and BYA . 19880. Concerning Back to Back . 19981. Concerning Raising MAN . 19982. The Prayer One Should Always Pray . 20183. Concerning the Right Vav, the Left Vav . 20184. What Is “So He Drove the Man Outof the Gardenof Eden Lest He Would Take of the Tree of Life”.204
85. What Is the Fruit of Goodly Trees, in the Work .20586. And They Built Store-Cities .20787. Shabbat Shekalim . 21688. All the Work Is Only Where There Are Two Ways .22089. To Understand the Words of the Holy Zohar.22090. In The Zohar, Beresheet . 22191. Concerning the Replaceable . 22192. Explaining the Discernment of “Luck” .22293. Concerning Fins and Scales .22394. And You Shall Keep Your Souls . 22495. Concerning Removing the Foreskin .22596. What Is Waste of Barn and Winery, in the Work .22697. Waste of Barn and Winery .23098. Spirituality Is Called That Which Will Never Be Lost .23299. He Did Not Say Wicked or Righteous .233100. The Written Torah and the Oral Torah . 240101. A Commentary on the Psalm,“For the Leader Upon Roses” . 240102. And You Shall Take You the Fruit of Goodly Trees. 242103. Whose Heart Maketh Him Willing.244104. And the Saboteur Was Sitting . 245105. A Wise Disciple Bastard Precedes a High Priest Commoner .246106. What Do the Twelve Challahs on Shabbat Imply. 249107. Concerning the Two Angels .250108. If You Leave Me One Day, I Will Leave You Two . 251109. Two Kinds of Meat .255110. A Field which the Lord Has Blessed . 257111. Breath, Sound, and Speech .259112. The Three Angels .260113. The Eighteen Prayer .269114. Prayer . 272
115. Still, Vegetative, Animate, and Speaking . 272116. Why Did He Say that Mitzvot Do Not Require Intention . 274117. You Labored and Did Not Find, Do Not Believe . 274118. To Understand the Matter of the Kneeswhich Have Bowed unto Baal . 276119. That Disciple who Learned in Secret . 277120. The Reason for Not Eating Nuts on Rosh Hashanah. 278121. She Is Like Merchant-Ships . 279122. Understanding What Is Written in Shulchan Aruch . 281123. His Divorce and His Hand Come as One.282124. A Shabbat of Genesis and of the Six Thousand Years .283125. Who Delights the Shabbat .284126. A Sage Comes to Town.286127. The Difference between Kernel, Essence,and Added Abundance .288128. Dew Drips from That Galgalta to Zeir Anpin.290129. Divinity in the Dust .292130. Tiberias of Our Sages, Good Is Thy Sight .293131. Who Comes to Be Purified.293132. In the Sweat of Thy Face Shalt Thou Eat Bread .294133. The Lights of Shabbat.294134. Intoxicating Wine .294135. Clean and Righteous Slay Thou Not .295136. The Difference between the First Letters and the Last Letters .295137. Zelophehad Was Gathering Wood .296138. About Fear that Sometimes Comes upon a Person .297139. The Difference between the Six Days of Actionand the Shabbat .297140. How I Love Thy Law .298141. The Holiday of Passover .298142. The Essence of the War .299
143. Only Good to Israel .299144. There Is a Certain People .300145. What Is Will Give Wisdom Specifically to the Wise . 301146. A Commentary on The Zohar.303147. The Work of Reception and Bestowal .303148. The Scrutiny of Bitter and Sweet, True and False .304149. Why We Need to Extend Hochma .304150. Prune unto the Lord, for He Hath Done Pride .305151. And Israel Saw the Egyptians .306152. For a Bribe Doth Blind the Eyes of the Wise .307153. A Thought Is an Upshot of the Desire.308154. There Cannot Be an Empty Space in the World .309155. The Cleanness of the Body.309156. Lest He Take of the Tree of Life . 310157. I Am Asleep But My Heart Is Awake . 311158. The Reason for Not Eatingat Each Other’s Home on Passover . 313159. And It Came To Pass in the Course of Those Many Days. 314160. The Reason for Concealing the Matzot. 315161. The Matter of the Giving of the Torah . 315162. Concerning the Hazak We SayAfter Completing the Series .317163. What the Authors of The Zohar Said . 318164. There Is a Difference between Corporealityand Spirituality . 319165. An Explanation to Elisha’s Request of Elijah . 319166. Two Discernments in Attainment .320167. The Reason Why It Is Called Shabbat Teshuvah . 321168. The Customs of Israel.322169. Concerning a Complete Righteous .322170. Thou Shalt Not Have in Thy Pocket a Large Stone.323
171. Zohar, Amor . 324172. The Matter of Preventions and Delays .326173. Why Do We Say L’Chaim . 327174. Concealment .328175. And If the Way Be Too Long for Thee .329176. When Drinking Brandy After the Havdala. 331177. Atonements . 331178. Three Partners in Man .332179. Three Lines .332180. In The Zohar, Amor .335181. Honor .336182. Moses and Solomon . 337183. The Discernment of the Messiah . 337184. The Difference between Faith and Mind . 337185. The Uneducated, the Fear of Shabbat Is upon Him .338186. Make Your Shabbat a Weekday, and Do Not Need People .339187. Choosing Labor.339188. All the Work Is Only Where there Are Two Ways.340189. The Act Affects the Thought .340190. Every Act Leaves an Imprint . 341191. The Time of Descent .344192. The Lots .345193. One Wall Serves Both. 347194. The Complete Seven .348195. Rewarded—I Will Hasten It .350196. A Grip for the Externals . 351197. Book, Author, Story .352198. Freedom .352199. To Every Man of Israel.353200. The Purification of the Masach .353201. Spirituality and Corporeality .354
202. In the Sweat of Thy Face Shalt Thou Eat Bread .355203. Man’s Pride shall Bring Him Low .355204. The Purpose of the Work .356205. Wisdom Crieth Aloud in the Streets . 357206. Faith and Pleasure .358207. Receiving In Order to Bestow .359208. Labor .360209. Three Conditions in Prayer .360210. A Handsome Flaw in You . 361211. As Though Standing before a King.362212. Embrace of the Right, Embrace of the Left.363213. Acknowledging the Desire .363214. Known in the Gates .365215. Faith . 367216. Right and Left .368217. If I Am Not for Me, Who Is for Me .368218. The Torah and the Creator Are One.369219. Devotion . 370220. Suffering . 371221. Multiple Authorities . 371222. The Part Given to the Sitra Achrato separate It from the Kedusha . 372223. Clothing, Bag, Lie, Almond . 373224. Yesod de Nukva and Yesod de Dechura . 374225. Raising Oneself . 375226. Written Torah and Oral Torah . 375227. The Reward for a Mitzva—a Mitzva . 375228. Fish Before Meat. 376229. Haman Pockets . 377230. The Lord Is High and the Low Will See . 378231. The Purity of the Vessels of Reception . 378
232. Completing the Labor . 379233. Pardon, Forgiveness, and Atonement .380234. Who Ceases Words of Torahand Engages in Conversation .382235. Looking in the Book Again .383236. Mine Adversaries Taunt Me All the Day .383237. For Man Shall Not See Me and Live .384238. Happy Is the Man who Does Not Forget Theeand the Son of Man who Exerts in Thee .384239. The Difference between Mochin of Shavuotand that of Shabbat Minchah.385240. Inquire Your Inquirers when They Inquire Your Face.386241. Call Upon Him while He Is Near .388242. What Is the Matter of Delighting the Pooron a Good Day, in the Work .390243. Examining the Shade on the Night of Hoshana Rabbah . 391APPENDIX ONE: FURTHER READING .393APPENDIX TWO: ABOUT BNEI BARUCH . 401
Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam)1. THERE IS NONE ELSE BESIDES HIMI heard on Parashat Yitro, 1, February 6, 1944It is written, “there is none else besides Him.” This means thatthere is no other force in the world that has the ability to doanything against Him. And what man sees, that there are thingsin the world that deny the Higher Household, the reason is thatthis is His will.And it is deemed a correction, called “the left rejects and theright adducts,” meaning that which the left rejects is consideredcorrection. This means that there are things in the world, which,to begin with, aim to divert a person from the right way, and bywhich he is rejected from Sanctity.And the benefit from the rejections is that through them aperson receives a need and a complete desire for the Creator tohelp him, since he sees that otherwise he is lost. Not only doeshe not progress in his work, but he sees that he regresses, thatis, he lacks the strength to observe Torah and Mitzvot even in LoLishma (not for Her Name). That only by genuinely overcomingall the obstacles, above reason, can he observe the Torah andMitzvot. But he does not always have the strength to overcomeabove reason; otherwise, he is forced to deviate, God forbid,from the way of the Creator, even from Lo Lishma.And he, who always feels that the shattered is greater thanthe whole, meaning that there are many more descents thanascents, and he does not see an end to these states, and he willforever remain outside of holiness, for he sees that it is difficultfor him to observe even as little as a jot, unless by overcomingabove reason. But he is not always able to overcome. And whatshall be the end?Then he comes to the decision that no one can help himbut the Creator Himself. This causes him to make a heartfeltdemand that the Creator will open his eyes and heart, and15
16Shamatitruly bring him nearer to eternal adhesion with God. It thusfollows, that all the rejections he had experienced had comefrom the Creator.This means that it was not because he was at fault, that hedid not have the ability to overcome. Rather, for those peoplewho truly want to draw near the Creator, and so they will notsettle for little, meaning remain as senseless children, he istherefore given help from Above, so he will not be able to saythat thank God, I have Torah and Mitzvot and good deeds, andwhat else do I need?And only if that person has a true desire will he receive helpfrom Above. And he is constantly shown how he is at fault in hispresent state. Namely, he is sent thoughts and views, which areagainst the work. This is in order for him to see that he is notone with the Lord. And as much as he overcomes, he always seeshow he is farther from holiness than others, who feel that theyare one with the Creator.But he, on the other hand, always has complaints anddemands, and he cannot justify the Creator’s behavior, and howHe behaves toward him. This pains him. Why is he not onewith the Creator? Finally, he comes to feel that he has no part inholiness whatsoever.Although he occasionally receives awakening from Above,which momentarily revives him, but soon after he falls into theplace of baseness. However, this is what causes him to come torealize that only God can help and really bring him closer.A man must always try and cleave to the Creator; namely,that all his thoughts will be about Him. That is to say, that evenif he is in the worst state, from which there cannot be a greaterdecline, he should not leave His domain, namely, that there isanother authority which prevents him from entering holiness,and which can bring benefit or harm.
Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam)17That is, he must not think that there is the force of the SitraAchra (Other Side), which does not allow a person to do gooddeeds and follow God’s ways. Rather, all is done by the Creator.The Baal Shem Tov said that he who says that there isanother force in the world, namely Klipot (shells), that person isin a state of “serving other gods.” It is not necessarily the thoughtof heresy that is the transgression, but if he thinks that there isanother authority and force apart from the Creator, by that heis committing a sin.Furthermore, he who says that man has his own authority,that is, he says that yesterday he himself did not want to followGod’s ways, that too is considered committing the sin of heresy.Meaning that he does not believe that only the Creator is theleader of the world.But when he has committed a sin, he must certainlyregret it and be sorry for having committed it. But here toowe should place the pain and sorrow in the right order: wheredoes he place the cause of the sin, for that is the point thatshould be regretted.Then, one should be remorseful and say: “I committed thatsin because the Creator hurled me down from holiness to aplace of filth, to the lavatory, the place of filth.” That is to saythat the Creator gave him a desire and craving to amuse himselfand breath air in a place of stench.(And you might say that it is written in books, that sometimesone comes incarnated as a pig. We should interpret that, as hesays, one receives a desire and craving to take liveliness fromthings he had already determined were litter, but now he wantsto receive nourishment from them).Also, when one feels that now he is in a state of ascent, andfeels some good flavor in the work, he must not say: “Now I amin a state that I understand that it is worthwhile to worship the
18ShamatiCreator.” Rather he should know that now he was favored bythe Creator, hence the Creator brought him closer, and for thisreason he now feels good flavor in the work. And he should becareful never to leave the domain of Sanctity, and say that thereis another who operates besides the Creator.(But this means that the matter of being favored by theCreator, or the opposite, does not depend on the personhimself, but only on the Creator. And man, with his externalmind, cannot comprehend why now the Lord has favored himand afterwards did not.)Likewise, when he regrets that the Creator does notdraw him near, he should also be careful that it would notbe concerning himself, meaning that he is remote from theCreator. This is because thus he becomes a receiver for his ownbenefit, and one who receives is separated. Rather, he shouldregret the exile of the Shechina (Divinity), meaning that he iscausing the sorrow of Divinity.One should imagine that it is as though a small organ ofthe person is sore. The pain is nonetheless felt primarily in themind and in the heart. The heart and the mind, which are thewhole of man. And certainly, the sensation of a single organcannot resemble the sensation of a person’s full stature, wheremost of the pain is felt.Likewise is the pain that a person feels when he is remotefrom the Creator. Since man is but a single organ of the HolyShechina, for the Holy Shechina is the common soul of Israel,hence, the sensation of a single organ does not resemble thesensation of the pain in general. That is to say that there issorrow in the Shechina when the organs are detached from her,and she cannot nurture her organs.(And we should say that this is what our sages said: “Whena man regrets, what does Shechina say? ‘It is lighter than my
Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam)19head.’”). By not relating the sorrow of remoteness to oneself, oneis spared
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ashlag, Yehudah. Shamati (I heard) / Yehuda Ashlag ; compiled by Michael Laitman. --1st ed. p. cm.
